WASHINGTON — At least two Colorado Tea Party groups believe they were caught up in a politically targeted campaign by the Internal Revenue Service to make it hard for small, conservative groups to incorporate as tax-exempt organizations.

The Western Slope Conservative Alliance and the Colorado Tea Party Patriots applied for 501(c)4 — a nonprofit, "social welfare" — status in 2010 and, more than two years later, both groups are waiting for official permission to operate under the tax code.

Under this special (c)4 status, organizations are explicitly prohibited from engaging in political campaigns but are able to "promote social welfare ... in some way for the common good and general welfare for the people," according to the tax code.

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Grand Junction's Western Slope Conservative Alliance says it has gone back and forth with the IRS since 2010, answering pages of questions about the organization's website and its board makeup. The alliance was also asked to provide detailed agendas for every meeting and all the printed materials it distributed.

The organization's chair, Kevin McCarney, called the combination of the inquiries burdensome.

"They were fishing for answers," McCarney said, noting that the group is composed of volunteers. "It was like they were trying to deny us. We still haven't gotten a response."

Colorado officials react

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On Capitol Hill Tuesday, Congressional members and government watchdogs decried the federal government for its deliberate targeting of conservative groups with "tea party" in their titles when they applied for tax-exempt status.

"I am appalled by this heavy-handed abuse of power by the IRS attempt to silence the voice of free speech and democracy," said Rep. Scott Tipton, R-Cortez. "It is deplorable whether aimed at conservative groups, liberal groups or any other group that's trying to express their point of view fully within the scope of the law."

The Treasury Department's Inspector General issued a report that found that for more than 18 months, starting in 2010, the IRS developed "inappropriate criteria" to specifically targeted these conservative groups. The IRS has launched a criminal investigation.

Tipton and Rep. Doug Lamborn, R-Colorado Springs, were among a group of more than 60 House Republicans who expressed concern in March 2012 that the IRS was unfairly creating burdensome questionnaires for Tea Party and liberty groups in Colorado.

At the time, IRS officials were awash in applications from new groups applying for the (c)4 tax-exempt status.

IRS Commissioner Steven Miller said Tuesday that applications for 501(c)4 status "more than doubled from 1,591 to 3,398 between 2010 and 2012."

Karl Rove highlighted

Sen. Michael Bennet, a Democrat, weighed in to Commissioner Miller last year from the other political perspective, encouraging the IRS do due diligence.

"We urge you to protect legitimate section 501(c)4 entities by preventing non-conforming organizations that are focused on federal election activities from abusing the tax code," Bennet, along with six other Senate Democrats, wrote in February 2012.

In a press release promoting the letter to the IRS, Bennet's office called out "long-time partisan operative Karl Rove," who is the founder of American Crossroads, which has multiple statuses, including (c)4, under the tax code.

"It's common knowledge that his organization exists to elect and defeat specific political candidates," the news release said. "Elections operations such as Mr. Rove's should not be allowed to masquerade as charities to take advantage of their tax exempt status."

Bennet's spokesman Adam Bozzi said Tuesday the senator "believes that targeting any people or organizations based on political ideology is wrong. He's glad the chairman has called for an investigation in the Finance Committee and looks forward to getting more information through that process."

Bozzi added: "It is also important that we don't lose sight of the underlying issue that political organizations do not masquerade as social welfare organizations and take advantage of the tax-exempt status that comes with it. The review of those organizations must be conducted without any bias or partisanship."

Application forfeited

The Denver-based Colorado Tea Party Patriots applied for tax-exempt, 501(c)4 status in late 2010.

The group, which is run by Regina Thomson, collects less than $10,000 a year in private contributions to operate, and mostly holds seminars and rallies about voter and constitutional issues, she said.

Thomson says that 22 months after the original application, the IRS asked for additional information from the Tea Party Patriots, including "any and all" materials being published by the group and a detailed list of past, present and future activities.

Because Thomson assumed presidency of the organization in February 2012 and switched the group's mailing address, she said she didn't receive the IRS follow-up letter. Tax officials forfeited her group's application.

Now the group has to apply again — and pay the $400 fee.

"It's an avalanche all of the sudden of abuses by the government," Thomson said.

Rep. Cory Gardner, R-Yuma, asked Tuesday that the IRS hand over the number of Colorado groups affected by the burdensome questions.

"The revelation that the IRS targeted groups based on their political beliefs is deeply troubling," Gardner said. "We want to make sure that the IRS owns up to all instances of discrimination and breaches of privacy."

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